I sprang for the “luxurious” way to travel from El Nido to Sabang. An air-conditioned shuttle van. Mama Leety from the inglorious Bayview Inn made sure that if I was going to book the van, that she would do it for me. And get her cut. So into a crowded, hot van I went for the “6” hour shortened version of the hellish ride I endured on the bus. The van was overbooked, so we all crowded into a dirty, hot van to ride along the bumpy road back to civilization. Headcount: 22 people inside a 10 passenger van, 3 on the roof of the van. Thank God there were no screaming babies. This scenario might seem terrible, but I glimpsed a dead caribou’s ass hanging out of a Jeepney with a bunch of people inside and a bunch more on the roof! After only 1 popped tire along the way, we headed on. I heard that cars, vans, busses and Jeepneys pop their tires so often on these treacherous roads, its not an if, but rather a when and how many flat tires per journey. Our “6” hour luxury ride was almost 9 hours when we got to “Salvacion“. Literally.
Anyway, I transferred at “Salvacion” and waited the quoted 10 minutes for the next Jeepney to Sabang. 1 hour later, it pulled up, already full. Somehow, we squeezed in 8 more people. Some were really old and frail, and my young and “able” body was torn up from the journey so far, and I watched these boney elderly Jeepney Triatheletes sit on a bumpy ride and smile and not wince at any of the especially bad bumps. So I figured it would be maybe half an hour to Sabang, but it was more like 1 hour. And we had to stop to pile 10 huge poles made of skinny tree trunks on top at one point. I met a Tagalog speaking German with a huge machete on the Jeepney, and asked him for a recommendation on where to stay. He told me the Dae Dae cottages were the nicest, and cleanest for the price. He offered to take me there when we got off the Jeepney. So I followed the German with the Machete down the main drag!
When we got to the Dae Dae, they had only one room available. So I decided to share it with the machete weilding German. Just kidding, lol, I‘m not that crazy. He was friends with the owner and never sleeps in the cottages. A side note, he told me he basically lives in seclusion, a 17 km walk to Sabang, the nearest town. He has 1 neighbor family, an indigenous tribe. He has lived this way for 12 years. He said Sabang was too crowded for his taste. Luckily, there was a tree house style cottage for me to call my own. It’s actually more of a cage. The door swings shut at the base, and I use a really skinny chain and the tiniest little “dear diary” notebook lock to secure myself in. There’s really huge gaps in the cage, so I really hope I don’t need to confront any jungle creatures in the night.
So, as I sit on my bed within my mosquito net (which is as holy as Joan Jett’s nylons) I realize that I’m not quite the nature girl adventurer girl I wish I was… or thought I was. I am craving a hot shower and a comfortable bed and a movie. And a decent meal. My 7,000 peso for a week allowance has dwindled down to 1,900 for 2 night’s accommodations, Underground river tour, bus ride back to Puerto and meals. I’m budgeting 100 pesos for food a day, or $2 US.
Today, I drank an apple juice (which is ironically the “Light n Fit” brand that is designed to help dieters lose weight mixed with Mila vitamin supplement. A friend gave me a bag before this trip and told me it would help me stay healthy. It’s a seed ground up into a powder and labeled, “The ancient superfood of the Aztecs rediscovered”. A cupful with juice can be used as a meal replacement, so I “ate” that for breakfast (actually that was my breakfast EVERY morning all week.) Then we stopped in a roadside dive restaurant for lunch, where I got a serving of rice and chicken for 50 pesos. The chicken was more of a tease, b/c it was all bones and joints (covered in really good sauce). My hands were filthy from riding Le Van, so I couldn’t pick up the grissle and really work anything much off the bones with my fork and spoon. Pinoy restaurants don’t give you knives at meals. Just a fork and spoon. And for dinner, an unripe mini banana and pineapple “Light n Fit” juice with Mila. I spilled some Mila on the floor of my hut and am hoping and PRAYING its not a jungle creature magnet.
All around, I hear crrrrrrrazy noises from outside. A honking, tortured moooo-ing, which I assume is a caribou. Crickets, a gazillion different bird calls, chickens, goats, roosters, frogs?, monkeys? And also leaves rustling. Chirps, beeps, whistles, rustles, and gurgles from outside. I really hope I don’t need to use the bathroom in the middle of the night. I might just pee in the “safety” of my cage stairwell. I think the spaces are big enough to avoid hitting the steps. Oh, and I keep hearing either gunshots or firecrackers very near by. There‘s no light associated with the sound, so I think its guns. And I saw HUGE black buzzards circling the cottages on my way in earlier.
The time? 6:49 pm. Pitch black dark outside, and the cottages are down a long unlit path, so I don’t want to venture outside. Its going to be a long night… hence the heightened level of detail on this blog entry. And the El Nido one. There is NOTHING to do. And no money even if there was….
The positive take-away? I feel so much more independent, and able to do much more than I thought I could within my comfort zone. I literally went to the end of the world on my own. Navigated some crazy roads, with no maps and no directions. Found where I was going, and where I was staying on my own. I am also extremely grateful for the people in my life who make it so much more fun than being on my own. I’d be having a blast right now if I was with loved ones. But, I’m by myself, and sucking it up and proceeding on the adventure as planned…..
